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Author Silas House blogs about writing, the writing life, books, movies, nature, religion, politics, and other things that generally concern conscious people. House is the author of the bestselling books Clay's Quilt, A Parchment of Leaves, The Coal Tattoo, Something's Rising, Eli the Good, and Same Sun Here. HIs novel Southernmost will be published in June 2018. Find out more about him and his writing at www.silas-house.com

Addendum-Favorite Music of 2013

I jumped the gun on my favorite albums of the year because I hadn't heard these gems when I composed my list. These were released in 2013 and are among my favorites, too. Ben Sollee's The Hollow Sessions is a beauty that finds Sollee covering artists like Tom Waits, Otis Redding, Paul Simon, Fiona Apple, Gillian Welch, Harry Belafonte, and others. The album was recorded in a little house situated in a Kentucky holler and conjure up the rural summertime with birds, wind, crickets, even water wending their way into the music. Sollee's cello and vocals are in top form and this piece of land brings out the best in him. In the press kit he says: “It’s a place to recharge and be still between the manic pace of the road. Over the years I’ve written songs, ballets, and ﬁlm scores while visiting and thought it would be a special palce to share, at least sonically. We really featured its voice on the recordings. It is a magical place and I tried to let it conduct me.”

The album is available in hard copy as vinyl only but is also available as a free download (!!!!) at the link below. But there is a button for leaving Sollee "a tip". Don't hesitate to leave what you think is fair for the album. After hearing it you'll know it was worth every dollar, and much more. It is so, so fine.

Amos Lee's Mountains of Sorrow, Rivers of Song has blown me away. I received it for a Christmas present and I've been listening to it nonstop pretty much ever since. I'm not just saying this: every song is excellent. I can't recommend this record highly enough. Go. Get. It. The title track features Patty Griffin and will slay you. But every track on the album will.

I left this next one off my first list because I was thinking of it as a reissue but I don't know what I was thinking. It's simply a collection of songs never before released, so it belongs on my favorites list, too. That'd be the latest one by Daniel Martin Moore, Archives Vol. 1. Moore's singing and picking is gentle and soothing and can smooth our your whole day. This album is a balm. Here's one of the tracks, this one featuring Joan Shelley (other guests on the album include Jim James of My Morning Jacket, Ben Sollee, Dan Dorff, and others).

I can't believe I didn't originally include The Quiltbox Sessions by Dan Dorff and Ronnie Kuller because it really sustained me throughout this year and has been a favorite ever since its release earlier this year. The reason I left it off my first list is simply because I had it in my head that it was released in 2012. It's the perfect record for writing. Or driving. Or anything, really. These meditations on piano, fiddle, and accordion are the perfect soundtrack for your day. Here's a favorite (a tango) from the album:

Last but not least is one of the most rocking, emotional, and fun albums of the year. Marshall Chapman is a firecracker, and her latest offering, Blaze of Glory, showcases all of her raw talent in a steady stream that will have you stomping your foot and maybe shedding a tear, too. American Songwriter hailed it as one of the finest singer-songwriter albums of the year, and I couldn't agree more. Although Marshall is one of my favorite singers, songwriters, and people I hadn't heard the album properly until recently. And now I can't stop listening to it. Buy it!

I hope you enjoy the wealth of great music out there that never gets played on the radio simply because it's too real and good for mainstream taste. People like Jason Isbell, Nicki Bluhm, Valerie June, Jim James and others show up on Part One of my Favorite Music of 2013.

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Silas House's writing is known for his lyrical prose and his attention to nature, spirituality, the operations of families, and the idea of created families. His work has been a two time finalist for the Southern Book Critics Circle Prize and has won the Fiction Prize from the National Society of Arts and Letters, the Award of Special Achivement from the Fellowship of Southern Writers, the Chaffin Award for Literature, the Appalachian Book of the Year, and two Kentucky Literary Awards for Novel of the Year, among other honors. His books CLAY'S QUILT and A PARCHMENT OF LEAVES were national bestsellers. He is a frequent contributor to The New York Times and Salon. He is one of Nashville's most in-demand press kit writers, having penned the bios of Kris Kristofferson, Lucinda Williams, Tim O'Brien, LeAnn Womack, Marshall Chapman, and many others. House is also a popular columnist and commentator who has appeared several times on NPR's "All Things Considered. He lives in Eastern Kentucky.
Photo by Tasha Thomas